General Information

Serial #

N/A

Part Number

8

Total Parts

8

AKA

N/A

Patents

N/A

General Description

Wood construction; steel fasteners and handle

Dimensions

Note: These reflect the general size for storage and are not necessarily representative of the object's true dimensions.

Length

50.4 cm

Width

26.4 cm

Height

8.9 cm

Thickness

N/A

Weight

N/A

Diameter

N/A

Volume

N/A

Lexicon

Group

Industrial Technology

Category

Tool storage

Sub-Category

N/A

Manufacturer

AKA

Unknown

Country

Unknown

State/Province

Unknown

City

Unknown

Context

Country

Canada

State/Province

Ontario

Period

circa 1900-1950

Canada

Thomas Pocklington Ltd. made and repaired surveying instruments in Toronto between 1925 and 1992. It was one of the few Canadian firms producing precision instruments before WWII. Thomas (b. 1882), the founder, was trained as an instrument maker in the U.K. He moved to Toronto in the early 20th century and worked for Consolidated Optical Co. until he started his own business in 1925. From that time until 1940 the firm occupied a location near what is now the Eaton centre; from 1940 to 1953 the firm occupied 30 Bridgman Ave (presently Tarragon Theatre); from 1953 to 1992 they occupied 208 Weston Rd. The CSTM has the Brightly circular dividing engine (CSTM ARTIFACT # 1992.1776) purchased by the firm in 1940. Thomas was succeeded by his son William, who was succeeded by his two sons John and Ronald. Very little is known about the small precision instrument industry in Toronto in the late 19th and early 20th century. Our growing collection of archival material and artifacts related to Pocklington, one of the leaders in that community, provides a more complete picture of this history. (From the acquisition proposal)

Function

Used to safely store and protect small tools and materials within a larger case.

Technical

It is quite rare to have the actual tool chests used by an instrument maker. The Pocklington tool chests were the personal workshop storage chests used by Thomas throughout his career. They are filled with a wide variety of items (watch parts, small tools, compasses, unfinished lenses, and workshop materials) and represent a rare glimpse of daily, artisanal activity. (From the acquisition proposal)

Area Notes

Unknown

Details

Markings

None

Missing

Pull knob on proper right is missing.

Finish

Wood with a dark brown finish.

Decoration

N/A